Search results for: physical activity tracking technologies.
Commenced in January 2007
Frequency: Monthly
Edition: International
Paper Count: 3982

Search results for: physical activity tracking technologies.

1762 Antibacterial Activity of Lactic Acid Bacteria Isolated from Table Olives against Skin Pathogens

Authors: M. Shafighi, Z. Emami, M. Shahsanaei, E. Khaliliyan

Abstract:

The aim of this study was to assess the effect of LAB isolated from Iranian native olives on the opportunistic skin pathogens, Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Staphylococcus aureus. Lactic Acid Bacteria were isolated from the brine of each sample in the prior of time. The samples were spread on MRS agar for isolation of lactobacillus and for lactococcus. 28 strains of labs were isolated. The labs were centrifuged, the supernatant was strewed and pellet was used to inoculation in wells or at blank disks. 20μl of each pellet was inoculated to blank disks and 40μl of each pellet was inoculated to each well. The result of disk and well diffusion agar against these pathogens were confirmed each other. The size of inhibition zone was different according to the type of bacteria, the method and the concentrations of labs.

Keywords: Olive, Probiotic, Lactic Acid Bacteria (LAB), P.aeroginosa and S.aureus

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1761 Analyzing the Potential of Job Creation by Taking the First Step Towards Circular Economy: Case Study of Brazil

Authors: R. Conde

Abstract:

The Brazilian economic projections and social indicators show a future of crisis for the country. Solutions to avoid this crisis scenario are necessary. Several developed countries implement initiatives linked to sustainability, mainly related to the circular economy, to solve their crises quickly - green recovery. This article aims to assess social gains if Brazil followed the same recovery strategy. Furthermore, with the use of data presented and recognized in the international academic society, the number of jobs that can be created, if Brazil took the first steps towards a more circular economy, was found. Moreover, in addition to the gross value in the number of jobs created, this article also detailed the number of these jobs by type of activity (collection, processing, and manufacturing) and by type of material.

Keywords: Circular economy, green recovery, job creation, social gains.

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1760 Numerical Solution of Linear Ordinary Differential Equations in Quantum Chemistry by Clenshaw Method

Authors: M. Saravi, F. Ashrafi, S.R. Mirrajei

Abstract:

As we know, most differential equations concerning physical phenomenon could not be solved by analytical method. Even if we use Series Method, some times we need an appropriate change of variable, and even when we can, their closed form solution may be so complicated that using it to obtain an image or to examine the structure of the system is impossible. For example, if we consider Schrodinger equation, i.e., We come to a three-term recursion relations, which work with it takes, at least, a little bit time to get a series solution[6]. For this reason we use a change of variable such as or when we consider the orbital angular momentum[1], it will be necessary to solve. As we can observe, working with this equation is tedious. In this paper, after introducing Clenshaw method, which is a kind of Spectral method, we try to solve some of such equations.

Keywords: Chebyshev polynomials, Clenshaw method, ODEs, Spectral methods

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1759 Biohydrogen Production from Starch Residues

Authors: Francielo Vendruscolo

Abstract:

This review summarizes the potential of starch agroindustrial residues as substrate for biohydrogen production. Types of potential starch agroindustrial residues, recent developments and bio-processing conditions for biohydrogen production will be discussed. Biohydrogen is a clean energy source with great potential to be an alternative fuel, because it releases energy explosively in heat engines or generates electricity in fuel cells producing water as only by-product. Anaerobic hydrogen fermentation or dark fermentation seems to be more favorable, since hydrogen is yielded at high rates and various organic waste enriched with carbohydrates as substrate result in low cost for hydrogen production. Abundant biomass from various industries could be source for biohydrogen production where combination of waste treatment and energy production would be an advantage. Carbohydrate-rich nitrogendeficient solid wastes such as starch residues can be used for hydrogen production by using suitable bioprocess technologies. Alternatively, converting biomass into gaseous fuels, such as biohydrogen is possibly the most efficient way to use these agroindustrial residues.

Keywords: Biofuel, dark fermentation, starch residues, food waste.

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1758 Seismic Analysis of URM Buildings in S. Africa

Authors: Trevor N. Haas, Thomas van der Kolf

Abstract:

South Africa has some regions which are susceptible to moderate seismic activity. A peak ground acceleration of between 0.1g and 0.15g can be expected in the southern parts of the Western Cape. Unreinforced Masonry (URM) is commonly used as a construction material for 2 to 5 storey buildings in underprivileged areas in and around Cape Town. URM is typically regarded as the material most vulnerable to damage when subjected to earthquake excitation. In this study, a three-storey URM building was analysed by applying seven earthquake time-histories, which can be expected to occur in South Africa using a finite element approach. Experimental data was used to calibrate the in- and out-of-plane stiffness of the URM. The results indicated that tensile cracking of the in-plane piers was the dominant failure mode. It is concluded that URM buildings of this type are at risk of failure especially if sufficient ductility is not provided. The results also showed that connection failure must be investigated further.

Keywords: URM, Seismic Analysis, FEM.

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1757 A New Approach for Network Reconfiguration Problem in Order to Deviation Bus Voltage Minimization with Regard to Probabilistic Load Model and DGs

Authors: Mahmood Reza Shakarami, Reza Sedaghati

Abstract:

Recently, distributed generation technologies have received much attention for the potential energy savings and reliability assurances that might be achieved as a result of their widespread adoption. The distribution feeder reconfiguration (DFR) is one of the most important control schemes in the distribution networks, which can be affected by DGs. This paper presents a new approach to DFR at the distribution networks considering wind turbines. The main objective of the DFR is to minimize the deviation of the bus voltage. Since the DFR is a nonlinear optimization problem, we apply the Adaptive Modified Firefly Optimization (AMFO) approach to solve it. As a result of the conflicting behavior of the single- objective function, a fuzzy based clustering technique is employed to reach the set of optimal solutions called Pareto solutions. The approach is tested on the IEEE 32-bus standard test system.

Keywords: Adaptive Modified Firefly Optimization (AMFO), Pareto solutions, feeder reconfiguration, wind turbines, bus voltage.

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1756 Hydrogen Generation by Accelerating Aluminum Corrosion in Water with Alumina

Authors: J. Skrovan, A. Alfantazi, T. Troczynski

Abstract:

For relatively small particles of aluminum (<60 μm), a measurable percentage of the aluminum (>5%) is observed to corrode before passivation occurs at moderate temperatures (>50oC) in de-ionized water within one hour. Physical contact with alumina powder results in a significant increase in both the rate of corrosion and the extent of corrosion before passivation. Whereas the resulting release of hydrogen gas could be of commercial interest for portable hydrogen supply systems, the fundamental aspects of Al corrosion acceleration in presence of dispersed alumina particles are equally important. This paper investigates the effects of various amounts of alumina on the corrosion rate of aluminum powders in water and the effect of multiple additions of aluminum into a single reactor.

Keywords: Alumina, Aluminum, Corrosion, Hydrogen

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1755 Li-Fi Technology: Data Transmission through Visible Light

Authors: Shahzad Hassan, Kamran Saeed

Abstract:

People are always in search of Wi-Fi hotspots because Internet is a major demand nowadays. But like all other technologies, there is still room for improvement in the Wi-Fi technology with regards to the speed and quality of connectivity. In order to address these aspects, Harald Haas, a professor at the University of Edinburgh, proposed what we know as the Li-Fi (Light Fidelity). Li-Fi is a new technology in the field of wireless communication to provide connectivity within a network environment. It is a two-way mode of wireless communication using light. Basically, the data is transmitted through Light Emitting Diodes which can vary the intensity of light very fast, even faster than the blink of an eye. From the research and experiments conducted so far, it can be said that Li-Fi can increase the speed and reliability of the transfer of data. This paper pays particular attention on the assessment of the performance of this technology. In other words, it is a 5G technology which uses LED as the medium of data transfer. For coverage within the buildings, Wi-Fi is good but Li-Fi can be considered favorable in situations where large amounts of data are to be transferred in areas with electromagnetic interferences. It brings a lot of data related qualities such as efficiency, security as well as large throughputs to the table of wireless communication. All in all, it can be said that Li-Fi is going to be a future phenomenon where the presence of light will mean access to the Internet as well as speedy data transfer.

Keywords: Communication, LED, Li-Fi, Wi-Fi.

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1754 Modelling of Powered Roof Supports Work

Authors: Marcin Michalak

Abstract:

Due to the increasing efforts on saving our natural environment a change in the structure of energy resources can be observed - an increasing fraction of a renewable energy sources. In many countries traditional underground coal mining loses its significance but there are still countries, like Poland or Germany, in which the coal based technologies have the greatest fraction in a total energy production. This necessitates to make an effort to limit the costs and negative effects of underground coal mining. The longwall complex is as essential part of the underground coal mining. The safety and the effectiveness of the work is strongly dependent of the diagnostic state of powered roof supports. The building of a useful and reliable diagnostic system requires a lot of data. As the acquisition of a data of any possible operating conditions it is important to have a possibility to generate a demanded artificial working characteristics. In this paper a new approach of modelling a leg pressure in the single unit of powered roof support. The model is a result of the analysis of a typical working cycles.

Keywords: Machine modelling, underground mining, coal mining.

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1753 Challenges and Proposed Solutions toward Successful Dealing with E-Waste in Kuwait

Authors: Salem Alajmi, Bader Altaweel

Abstract:

Kuwait, like many parts of the world, has started facing the dangerous growth of electrical and electronic waste. This growth has been noted in last two decades, emerging with the development of mobile phones, computers, TVs, as well as other electronic devices and electrical equipment. Kuwait is already among the highest global producers of electronic waste (e-waste) in kg per capita. Furthermore, Kuwait is among the global countries that set high-level future targets in renewable energy projects. Accumulation of this electronic waste, as well as accelerated renewable energy projects, will lead to the increase of future threats to the country. In this research, factors that lead to the increase the e-waste in Kuwait are presented. Also, the current situations of dealing with e-waste in the country as well as the associated challenges are examined. The impact of renewable energy projects on future e-waste accumulation is considered. Moreover, this research proposes the best strategies and practices toward successfully dealing with the waste of electronic devices and renewable energy technologies.

Keywords: E-waste, landfill, environmental management, valuable metals, hazardous materials.

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1752 Exact Solutions of the Helmholtz equation via the Nikiforov-Uvarov Method

Authors: Said Laachir, Aziz Laaribi

Abstract:

The Helmholtz equation often arises in the study of physical problems involving partial differential equation. Many researchers have proposed numerous methods to find the analytic or approximate solutions for the proposed problems. In this work, the exact analytical solutions of the Helmholtz equation in spherical polar coordinates are presented using the Nikiforov-Uvarov (NU) method. It is found that the solution of the angular eigenfunction can be expressed by the associated-Legendre polynomial and radial eigenfunctions are obtained in terms of the Laguerre polynomials. The special case for k=0, which corresponds to the Laplace equation is also presented.

Keywords: Helmholtz equation, Nikiforov-Uvarov method, exact solutions, eigenfunctions.

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1751 Catalytic Activity of Aluminum Impregnated Catalysts for the Degradation of Waste Polystyrene

Authors: J. Shah, M. Rasul Jan, Adnan

Abstract:

The aluminum impregnated catalysts of Al-alumina (Al-Al2O3), Al-montmorillonite (Al-Mmn) and Al-activated charcoal (Al-AC) of various percent loadings were prepared by wet impregnation method and characterized by SEM, XRD and N2 adsorption/desorption (BET). The catalytic properties were investigated in the degradation of waste polystyrene (WPS). The results of catalytic degradation of Al metal, 20% Al-Al2O3, 5% Al-Mmn and 20% Al-AC were compared with each other for optimum conditions. Among the catalyst used 20% Al-Al2O3 was found the most effective catalyst. The BET surface area of 20% Al-Al2O3 determined was 70.2 m2/g. The SEM data revealed the catalyst with porous structure throughout the frame work with small nanosized crystallites. The yield of liquid products with 20% Al-Al2O3 (91.53 ± 2.27 wt%) was the same as compared to Al metal (91.20 ± 0.35 wt%) but the selectivity of hydrocarbons and yield of styrene monomer (56.32 wt%) was higher with 20% Al-Al2O3 catalyst.

 

Keywords: Impregnation, catalytic degradation, waste polystyrene, styrene.

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1750 The Cytotoxic Effect of PM 701 and its Fractions on Cell Proliferation of Breast Cancer Cells, McF7

Authors: Faten A. Khorshid

Abstract:

Breast cancer is the most common malignancy in the world among women. Many therapies have been designed to treat this disease. Mamectomy, chemotherapy and radiotherapy are still the main therapies of breast cancer. However, the results were unsatisfactory and still far from the ideal treatment. PM 701is a natural product, has anticancer activity. The bioactive fraction PMF and subfraction PMFK had been isolated from PM701. PM 701 and its fractions were proved to have a cytotoxic properties against different cancer cell lines. This article is directed for the further examination of lyophilized PM701 and its active fractions on the growth of breast cancer cells (MCF-7). PM 701, PMF or PMFK were adding to the cultural medium, where MCF-7 is incubated. PM 701, PMF or PMFK were able to inhibit significantly the proliferation of MCF-7 cells, Moreover these new agents were proved to induce apoptosis of the breast cancer cells; through its direct effect on the nuclei.

Keywords: Anticancer agent, breast carcinoma, MCF-7 cell line, PM 701

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1749 Impacts of Global Warming on the World Food Market According to SRES Scenarios

Authors: J. Furuya, S. Kobayashi, S. D. Meyer

Abstract:

This research examines possible effects of climatic change focusing on global warming and its impacts on world agricultural product markets, by using a world food model developed to consider climate changes. GDP and population for each scenario were constructed by IPCC and climate data for each scenario was reported by the Hadley Center and are used in this research to consider results in different contexts. Production and consumption of primary agriculture crops of the world for each socio-economic scenario are obtained and investigated by using the modified world food model. Simulation results show that crop production in some countries or regions will have different trends depending on the context. These alternative contexts depend on the rate of GDP growth, population, temperature, and rainfall. Results suggest that the development of environment friendly technologies lead to more consumption of food in many developing countries. Relationships among environmental policy, clean energy development, and poverty elimination warrant further investigation.

Keywords: Global warming, SRES scenarios, World food model.

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1748 Protocol Modifications for Improved Co-Channel Wireless LAN Goodput in Partitioned Spaces

Authors: Raymond J. Jayabal, Chiew Tong Lau

Abstract:

Partitions can play a significant role in minimising cochannel interference of Wireless LANs by attenuating signals across room boundaries. This could pave the way towards higher density deployments in home and office environments through spatial channel reuse. Yet, due to protocol limitations, the latest incantation of IEEE 802.11 standard is still unable to take advantage of this fact: Despite having clearly adequate Signal to Interference Ratio (SIR) over co-channel neighbouring networks in other rooms, its goodput falls significantly lower than its maximum in the absence of cochannel interferers. In this paper, we describe how this situation can be remedied via modest modifications to the standard.

Keywords: IEEE 802.11 Wireless LAN, spatial channel re-use, physical layer capture.

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1747 Effect of Synthetic Queen Mandibular Pheromone on Pollination of Cotton by Honey Bees, Apis mellifera

Authors: M. Keshlaf, R. Mensah, O. Nicetic, R. Spooner-Hart

Abstract:

The effectiveness of a commercial bee attractant, synthetic honey bee queen mandibular pheromone (Fruit Boost®) for enhancing pollination of Gossypium hirsutum was evaluated in a transgenic (Bt) cotton crop. The study assessed the number of bee visitations to blossoms of plants treated with Fruit Boost® as well, as effects on fruit set, yield, and lint quality. Bee activity on plots sprayed with pheromone concentrations of 50 and 500 queen equivalents (QEQ) /ha did not differ significantly from water-only control, on the day of application or the subsequent day. Application of the pheromone did not increase fruit set, yield, or lint quality. Two consecutive pheromone applications, applied two days apart, were not significantly different from a single application for any parameter.

Keywords: Apis mellifera, cotton, pollination, QMP pheromone

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1746 Routing Capability and Blocking Analysis of Dynamic ROADM Optical Networks (Category - II) for Dynamic Traffic

Authors: Indumathi T. S., T. Srinivas, B. Siva Kumar

Abstract:

Reconfigurable optical add/drop multiplexers (ROADMs) can be classified into three categories based on their underlying switching technologies. Category I consists of a single large optical switch; category II is composed of a number of small optical switches aligned in parallel; and category III has a single optical switch and only one wavelength being added/dropped. In this paper, to evaluate the wavelength-routing capability of ROADMs of category-II in dynamic optical networks,the dynamic traffic models are designed based on Bernoulli, Poisson distributions for smooth and regular types of traffic. Through Analytical and Simulation results, the routing power of cat-II of ROADM networks for two traffic models are determined.

Keywords: Fully-Reconfigurable Optical Add-Drop Multiplexers (FROADMs), Limited Tunability in Reconfigurable Optical Add-Drop multiplexers (LROADM), Multiplexer/De- Multiplexer (MUX/DEMUX), Reconfigurable Optical Add-Drop Multiplexers (ROADMs), Wavelength Division Multiplexing (WDM).

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1745 Human Behavior Modeling in Video Surveillance of Conference Halls

Authors: Nour Charara, Hussein Charara, Omar Abou Khaled, Hani Abdallah, Elena Mugellini

Abstract:

In this paper, we present a human behavior modeling approach in videos scenes. This approach is used to model the normal behaviors in the conference halls. We exploited the Probabilistic Latent Semantic Analysis technique (PLSA), using the 'Bag-of-Terms' paradigm, as a tool for exploring video data to learn the model by grouping similar activities. Our term vocabulary consists of 3D spatio-temporal patch groups assigned by the direction of motion. Our video representation ensures the spatial information, the object trajectory, and the motion. The main importance of this approach is that it can be adapted to detect abnormal behaviors in order to ensure and enhance human security.

Keywords: Activity modeling, clustering, PLSA, video representation.

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1744 Dynamic Performance Indicators for Aged-Care Construction Projects

Authors: Norman Wu, Darren Sun

Abstract:

Key performance indicators (KPIs) are used for post result evaluation in the construction industry, and they normally do not have provisions for changes. This paper proposes a set of dynamic key performance indicators (d-KPIs) which predicts the future performance of the activity being measured and presents the opportunity to change practice accordingly. Critical to the predictability of a construction project is the ability to achieve automated data collection. This paper proposes an effective way to collect the process and engineering management data from an integrated construction management system. The d-KPI matrix, consisting of various indicators under seven categories, developed from this study can be applied to close monitoring of the development projects of aged-care facilities. The d-KPI matrix also enables performance measurement and comparison at both project and organization levels.

Keywords: Aged-care project, construction, dynamic KPI, healthcare system.

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1743 Hybrid Prefix Adder Architecture for Minimizing the Power Delay Product

Authors: P.Ramanathan, P.T.Vanathi

Abstract:

Parallel Prefix addition is a technique for improving the speed of binary addition. Due to continuing integrating intensity and the growing needs of portable devices, low-power and highperformance designs are of prime importance. The classical parallel prefix adder structures presented in the literature over the years optimize for logic depth, area, fan-out and interconnect count of logic circuits. In this paper, a new architecture for performing 8-bit, 16-bit and 32-bit Parallel Prefix addition is proposed. The proposed prefix adder structures is compared with several classical adders of same bit width in terms of power, delay and number of computational nodes. The results reveal that the proposed structures have the least power delay product when compared with its peer existing Prefix adder structures. Tanner EDA tool was used for simulating the adder designs in the TSMC 180 nm and TSMC 130 nm technologies.

Keywords: Parallel Prefix Adder (PPA), Dot operator, Semi-Dotoperator, Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor (CMOS), Odd-dot operator, Even-dot operator, Odd-semi-dot operator andEven-semi-dot operator.

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1742 PIELG: A Protein Interaction Extraction Systemusing a Link Grammar Parser from Biomedical Abstracts

Authors: Rania A. Abul Seoud, Nahed H. Solouma, Abou-Baker M. Youssef, Yasser M. Kadah

Abstract:

Due to the ever growing amount of publications about protein-protein interactions, information extraction from text is increasingly recognized as one of crucial technologies in bioinformatics. This paper presents a Protein Interaction Extraction System using a Link Grammar Parser from biomedical abstracts (PIELG). PIELG uses linkage given by the Link Grammar Parser to start a case based analysis of contents of various syntactic roles as well as their linguistically significant and meaningful combinations. The system uses phrasal-prepositional verbs patterns to overcome preposition combinations problems. The recall and precision are 74.4% and 62.65%, respectively. Experimental evaluations with two other state-of-the-art extraction systems indicate that PIELG system achieves better performance. For further evaluation, the system is augmented with a graphical package (Cytoscape) for extracting protein interaction information from sequence databases. The result shows that the performance is remarkably promising.

Keywords: Link Grammar Parser, Interaction extraction, protein-protein interaction, Natural language processing.

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1741 Nanostructured Pt/MnO2 Catalysts and Their Performance for Oxygen Reduction Reaction in Air Cathode Microbial Fuel Cell

Authors: Maksudur Rahman Khan, Kar Min Chan, Huei Ruey Ong, Chin Kui Cheng, Wasikur Rahman

Abstract:

Microbial fuel cells (MFCs) represent a promising technology for simultaneous bioelectricity generation and wastewater treatment. Catalysts are significant portions of the cost of microbial fuel cell cathodes. Many materials have been tested as aqueous cathodes, but air-cathodes are needed to avoid energy demands for water aeration. The sluggish oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) rate at air cathode necessitates efficient electrocatalyst such as carbon supported platinum catalyst (Pt/C) which is very costly. Manganese oxide (MnO2) was a representative metal oxide which has been studied as a promising alternative electrocatalyst for ORR and has been tested in air-cathode MFCs. However the single MnO2 has poor electric conductivity and low stability. In the present work, the MnO2 catalyst has been modified by doping Pt nanoparticle. The goal of the work was to improve the performance of the MFC with minimum Pt loading. MnO2 and Pt nanoparticles were prepared by hydrothermal and sol gel methods, respectively. Wet impregnation method was used to synthesize Pt/MnO2 catalyst. The catalysts were further used as cathode catalysts in air-cathode cubic MFCs, in which anaerobic sludge was inoculated as biocatalysts and palm oil mill effluent (POME) was used as the substrate in the anode chamber. The asprepared Pt/MnO2 was characterized comprehensively through field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM), X-Ray diffraction (XRD), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and cyclic voltammetry (CV) where its surface morphology, crystallinity, oxidation state and electrochemical activity were examined, respectively. XPS revealed Mn (IV) oxidation state and Pt (0) nanoparticle metal, indicating the presence of MnO2 and Pt. Morphology of Pt/MnO2 observed from FESEM shows that the doping of Pt did not cause change in needle-like shape of MnO2 which provides large contacting surface area. The electrochemical active area of the Pt/MnO2 catalysts has been increased from 276 to 617 m2/g with the increase in Pt loading from 0.2 to 0.8 wt%. The CV results in O2 saturated neutral Na2SO4 solution showed that MnO2 and Pt/MnO2 catalysts could catalyze ORR with different catalytic activities. MFC with Pt/MnO2 (0.4 wt% Pt) as air cathode catalyst generates a maximum power density of 165 mW/m3, which is higher than that of MFC with MnO2 catalyst (95 mW/m3). The open circuit voltage (OCV) of the MFC operated with MnO2 cathode gradually decreased during 14 days of operation, whereas the MFC with Pt/MnO2 cathode remained almost constant throughout the operation suggesting the higher stability of the Pt/MnO2 catalyst. Therefore, Pt/MnO2 with 0.4 wt% Pt successfully demonstrated as an efficient and low cost electrocatalyst for ORR in air cathode MFC with higher electrochemical activity, stability and hence enhanced performance.

Keywords: Microbial fuel cell, oxygen reduction reaction, Pt/MnO2, palm oil mill effluent, polarization curve.

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1740 Cyber Security in Nigeria: A Collaboration between Communities and Professionals

Authors: K. Alese Boniface, K. Adu Michael, K. Owa Victor

Abstract:

Security can be defined as the degree of resistance to, or protection from harm. It applies to any vulnerable and valuable assets, such as persons, dwellings, communities, nations or organizations. Cybercrime is any crime committed or facilitated via the Internet. It is any criminal activity involving computers and networks. It can range from fraud to unsolicited emails (spam). It includes the distant theft of government or corporate secrets through criminal trespass into remote systems around the globe. Nigeria like any other nations of the world is currently having her own share of the menace that has been used even as tools by terrorists. This paper is an attempt at presenting cyber security as an issue that requires a coordinated national response. It also acknowledges and advocates the key roles to be played by stakeholders and the importance of forging strong partnerships to prevent and tackle cybercrime in Nigeria. 

Keywords: Security, Cybercrime, Internet, Government, Stakeholders, Partnerships.

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1739 Effect of Different Fertilization Methods on Soil Biological Indexes

Authors: Khosro Mohammadi

Abstract:

Fertilization plays an important role in crop growth and soil improvement. This study was conducted to determine the best fertilization system for wheat production. Experiments were arranged in a complete block design with three replications in two years. Main plots consisted of six methods of fertilization including (N1): farmyard manure; (N2): compost; (N3): chemical fertilizers; (N4): farmyard manure + compost; (N5): farmyard manure + compost + chemical fertilizers and (N6): control were arranged in sub plots. The addition of compost or farm yard manure significantly increased the soil microbial biomass carbon in comparison to the chemical fertilizer. The dehydrogenase, phosphatase and urease activities in the N3 treatment were significantly lower than in the farm yard manure and compost treatments.

Keywords: Enzyme activity, fertilization, microbial biomasscarbon, wheat.

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1738 A New OvS Approach in an Assembly Line Balancing Problem

Authors: P. Azimi, B. Behtoiy

Abstract:

One of the most famous techniques which affect the efficiency of a production line is the assembly line balancing (ALB) technique. This paper examines the balancing effect of a whole production line of a real auto glass manufacturer in three steps. In the first step, processing time of each activity in the workstations is generated according to a practical approach. In the second step, the whole production process is simulated and the bottleneck stations have been identified, and finally in the third step, several improvement scenarios are generated to optimize the system throughput, and the best one is proposed. The main contribution of the current research is the proposed framework which combines two famous approaches including Assembly Line Balancing and Optimization via Simulation technique (OvS). The results show that the proposed framework could be applied in practical environments, easily.

Keywords: Assembly line balancing problem, optimization via simulation, production planning.

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1737 Ecotourism, Expansion, alongside with Dominant Function of Khark (kharg) and Kharko Islands

Authors: Maral Mohamadi Zanjani

Abstract:

In recent decade's tourism industry is one of main reasons of the social and economical development for many countries; so these countries try to gain more portion of it for themselves. The excessive natural and cultural touristy potentialities in Iran made this country to be one of the most attractive sightseeing areas, although; Iran has got the lowest rate of tourists. Khark Island is about 32 km. It is a beautiful coral reef coast; about 98% of oil export has been done through this place. The ecotourism potentialities of Khark and Kharko Islands (about 3.7km far from Khark) are the reason to consider ecotourism and the main activity in these islands which is exporting oil at the same time. This article refers to way of measuring the geographical coordination of the place, and the potentialities, ecotourism attraction of the islands and introduces some ideas in order to expand tourism in the islands.

Keywords: Ecotourism, expansion, tourism, attraction, dominant function, Khark and Kharko Islands

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1736 On the Quantizer Design for Base Station Cooperation Systems with SC-FDE Techniques

Authors: K. Firsanov, S. Gritsutenko, R. Dinis

Abstract:

By employing BS (Base Station) cooperation we can increase substantially the spectral efficiency and capacity of cellular systems. The signals received at each BS are sent to a central unit that performs the separation of the different MT (Mobile Terminal) using the same physical channel. However, we need accurate sampling and quantization of those signals so as to reduce the backhaul communication requirements. In this paper we consider the optimization of the quantizers for BS cooperation systems. Four different quantizer types are analyzed and optimized to allow better SQNR (Signal-to-Quantization Noise Ratio) and BER (Bit Error Rate) performance.

Keywords: Base Stations cooperation scheme, Bit Error Rate (BER), Quantizer, Signal to Quantization Noise Ratio (SQNR), SCFDE.

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1735 A Model of Network Security with Prevention Capability by Using Decoy Technique

Authors: Supachai Tangwongsan, Labhidhorn Pangphuthipong

Abstract:

This research work proposes a model of network security systems aiming to prevent production system in a data center from being attacked by intrusions. Conceptually, we introduce a decoy system as a part of the security system for luring intrusions, and apply network intrusion detection (NIDS), coupled with the decoy system to perform intrusion prevention. When NIDS detects an activity of intrusions, it will signal a redirection module to redirect all malicious traffics to attack the decoy system instead, and hence the production system is protected and safe. However, in a normal situation, traffic will be simply forwarded to the production system as usual. Furthermore, we assess the performance of the model with various bandwidths, packet sizes and inter-attack intervals (attacking frequencies).

Keywords: Intrusion detection, Decoy, Snort, Intrusion prevention.

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1734 The Oxidative Stress and the Antioxidant Defense of the Lower Vegetables towards an Environmental Pollution

Authors: Fadila Khaldi, Nedjoud Grara, Houria Berrebbah, Mohamed Réda Djebar

Abstract:

The use of bioindicators plants (lichens, bryophytes and Sphagnum....) in monitoring pollution by heavy metals has been the subject of several works. However, few studies have addressed the impact of specific type-s pollutants (fertilizers, pesticides.) on these organisms. We propose in this work to make the highlighting effect of NPKs (NPK: nitrogen-phosphate-potassium-sulfate (NP2O5K2O) (15,15,15), at concentrations of 10, 20, 30 , 40 and 50mM/L) on the activity of detoxification enzymes (GSH/GST, CAT, APX and MDA) of plant bioindicators (mosses and lichens) after treatment for 3 and 7 days. This study shows the important role of the defense system in the accumulation and tolerance to chemical pollutants through the activation of enzymatic (GST (glutathione-S-transferase, APX (ascorbat peroxidase), CAT (catalase)) and nonenzymatic biomarkers (GSH (glutathione), MDA (malondialdehyde)) against oxidative stress generated by the NPKs.

Keywords: NPKs, Bioindicators, lower plants, GSH / GST, CAT, APX and MDA.

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1733 Operation Strategies of Residential Micro Combined Heat and Power Technologies

Authors: Omar A Shaneb, Adell S. Amer

Abstract:

Reduction of CO2 emissions has become a priority for several countries due to increasing concerns about global warming and climate change, especially in the developed countries. Residential sector is considered one of the most important sectors for considerable reduction of CO2 emissions since it represents a significant amount of the total consumed energy in those countries. A significant CO2 reduction cannot be achieved unless some initiatives have been adopted in the policy of these countries. Introducing micro combined heat and power (!CHP) systems into residential energy systems is one of these initiatives, since such a technology offers several advantages. Moreover, !CHP technology has the opportunity to be operated not only by natural gas but it could also be operated by renewable fuels. However, this technology can be operated by different operation strategies. Each strategy has some advantages and disadvantages. This paper provides a review of different operation strategies of such a technology used for residential energy systems, especially for single dwellings. The review summarizes key points that outline the trend of previous research carried out in this field.

Keywords: Energy management, !CHP systems, residential energy systems, sustainable houses, operation strategy.

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